Even though his 13-year NBA career was cut short due to blood clots in his lungs, former Miami Heat big Chris Bosh had quite a successful tenure in the NBA.
After all, he made 11 All-Star teams and won two NBA Titles with the Heat in 2011-12 and 2012-13, in addition to making an All-NBA team in 2006-07.
Though he revealed, after briefly playing in Goran Dragic’s farewell event last weekend, that he received offers to play overseas, even though that wasn’t in his best interest at the time.
“I actually had offers from Europe,” Bosh told Cesare Milanti of Eurohoops.net. “But it was time. I wasn’t in a position where I wanted to up and move my family. I had babies at the time. I took it as a sign and continued to move on. But I had a couple of offers. It wasn’t Greece. (It was) Spain, France–EuroLeague.”
I asked Chris Bosh if he ever thought about playing in Europe:
“I actually had offers from Europe. But it was time. I wasn’t in a position where I wanted to up and move my family. I took it as a sign and moved on. Those offers? From France and Spain, in the EuroLeague”. pic.twitter.com/wxBWLCRT9x
— Cesare Milanti (@cesaremilanti) August 24, 2024
In 13 NBA seasons with the Heat and Toronto Raptors, Bosh averaged 19.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists, shooting 49.4 percent from the floor, 33.5 percent from 3-point range and 79.9 percent from the free-throw line.
Bosh didn’t reveal when those offers came, though one could assume it was after he was diagnosed with blood clots. The last game he played in was on Feb. 9, 2016, against the San Antonio Spurs before the 2015-16 All-Star break. He tallied 18 points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal on 6-of-12 shooting.
The team announced 12 days later that he would miss the rest of the season due to blood clots. He failed the Heat physical ahead of the 2016-17 and was told that his illness was “career-ending” in June of 2017.
One could only wonder how Bosh, in the middle of his physical prime when he was forced to retire, would’ve ended his NBA career if he had been able to stay healthy. In his final season with the Heat, he posted 19.1 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists on 46.7 percent shooting, including 36.5 percent shooting from 3-point range on a career-most 4.2 3-point attempts per game.
I can speak for everyone when I say that I’m glad he was able to suit up with Dragic one last time Saturday. It was a glorious moment for everyone to cherish, even though he almost didn’t play.
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